Koi to ieba onaji na ni koso omourame ikade waga mi o hito ni shirasen - Shui Wakashu(English Translation & Meaning)

恋と言へば同じ名にこそ思ふらめ
いかで我が身を人に知らせん

Roma-ji: Koi to ieba onaji na ni koso omourame ikade waga mi o hito ni shirasen
English Translation: When one speaks of love,
she must think it bears one name,
every love the same;
somehow I would let her know
what this heart of mine is like.
Meaning: She must think that every love, being called "love," is all the same; somehow I wish I could let her know what my love truly is.
Commentary: Book Eleven Love Poems I 677

Headnote continued from the preceding poem: "Topic unknown"
The poem says that since every love is called by the same name, the beloved must think the poet's love is ordinary, and he wishes somehow to let her know its depth. It expresses the frustration of wanting to convey a depth of feeling all one's own, which the single word "love" cannot express. It echoes 660, which lamented that there was nothing to liken love to, and like "kimi ni shirasemu" in 635, it sings of the wish to make one's love known.

First line, "koi to ieba," means "when one speaks of love."
Second line, "onaji na ni koso," means "as the same name," with the binding particle "koso" resolved by "rame" in the third line.
Third line, "omourame," means "she must think," with "rame" the perfective form of the present conjectural "ramu." The poem breaks after this third line.
Fourth line, "ikade waga mi o," means "somehow, myself," with "ikade" answering "n" in the final line to express a wish.
Final line, "hito ni shirasen," means "I would let her know," the same phrasing as the final line of 635, "kimi ni shirasemu."
Author: Unknown Poet
Source: Shui Wakashu
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